Greg McElroy sees Auburn football at same level as Texas A&M, Kentucky, and Florida

Greg McElroy has the Auburn football in the third tier of the SEC along with Texas A&M, Kentucky, and Florida -- above only Mississippi State, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Vanderbilt as the conference's cellar dwellers.

"Texas A&M at the top, super dangerous, could very easily join the second tier if the opportunity presents itself," McElroy said during an appearance on "On Texas Football." "Auburn I think is really, really dangerous. Kentucky is very, very dangerous. And then I would go as far as to include a team like Florida."

AU got two "reallys," while Kentucky got two "verys." Both were below the "top, super dangerous" label Texas A&M received. McElroy was evidently close to including Florida in that bottom tier due to the various off-field issues Billy Napier has faced this offseason.

Auburn football SEC schedule features teams in every tier

Auburn faces two teams in McElroy's top tier (Texas A&M, Kentucky), two in his second tier (Mizzou, Oklahoma), two in the bottom tier (Arkansas, Vanderbilt), and two at the top (Alabama, Georgia). And it's actually the easiest schedule the Tigers have had in years.

A win against Oklahoma could get AU into the second tier assuming they take care of all the teams below them. For all we know, there could be several teams being over or underhyped. That's probably the case given how each season pans out.

Maybe it's Horns Down for Texas more often than not in the SEC. Maybe Kalen DeBoer will lose the Crimson Tide's momentum that Nick Saban cultivated for nearly two decades in Tuscaloosa.

There are curveballs thrown at the college football viewing public every season in every conference, and things feel more predictable now in the NIL era.

For all we know, Auburn could be long overdue for an unpredictable run. Keywords: long overdue.